Music Service Special Projects

The Asthma Project - Bronchial Boogie

This project is based on a partnership between the Oldham Music Service and The Oldham PCT. The aim of the project is to provide asthma education, breathing exercises and wind instrumental tuition. It is aimed at improving respiratory health and raising self esteem in asthmatic children. There are currently five primary and one secondary school involved and during each weekly session asthma nurses and instrumental teachers work together with small groups of children. The Bronchial Boogie Project has achieved national acclaim and the results have been encouraging showing improvement in the childrens' respiratory health, absences from school, sleepless nights, self esteem and ability to join in sporting activities. For more information visit the Bronchial Boogie website

Live Music for children

Each year a series of Live Music Concerts take place at the Oldham Music Centre featuring professional musicians who present a series of concerts for Oldham school children. These concerts usually take the form of a brass, wind or string ensemble and the players talk about the history of the instruments and demonstrate the sounds of which the instruments are capable both as individual instruments and also as part of the ensemble.

Soundbeam Project

In The Spring term 2000 the Music Service purchased a Soundbeam. This is a device which produces a variety of sounds by reacting to movement, even movement as simple as the blinking of an eye. They have been used with children who have special needs particularly those who have very little physical movement Music Service staff have undertaken training in the use of the Soundbeam as a tool for creative music making and each year the Soundbeam is used in different creative music making projects both at the Music Centre and in schools. More recently the Soundbeam has been used by pupils in the compositional elements of GCSE examination courses

Link Project

The Music Service has developed a music project working in partnership with The Ethnic Minorities Service, funded by the Children Fund and using the Soundbeam. Children from schools with different ethnic backgrounds have been brought together at the Music Centre to make music. Taking a specific theme the children sing songs, listen to and move to appropriate music and then work with the Soundbeam to create their own relevant music. The project involves two linked schools each half term.

The Dyspraxia Project - Drumming Down Dyspraxia

This action research project explored ways in which percussion work might help children with Dyxpraxia. The Music Service contact health professionals who assisted in developing the content of workshops which took place each week at the Oldham Music Centre. The project involved partnership with the Physiotherapy Unit at Royal Oldham Hospital, Dalcroze Eurhythmics specialist teachers, FDK (Fantastic Dyspraxic Kids) parental support group and a Paediatric Occupational Therapist. This was an eighteen month project, part funded by The Arts Council.

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